Focus turning to pit stop mode

CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand is due to arrive into its pit stop destination of Puerto Montt tomorrow (April 3) and the crew’s focus is turning to making the pit stop in the Chilean port is as brief as possible.

The crew has been making the most of the moderate weather conditions of recent days to clean and prepare the boat’s damaged bow section in order that the team of waiting boat builders can begin their work immediately upon the boat arriving in Puerto Montt.

The CAMPER shore crew will be working around the clock to carry out a permanent repair job and allow CAMPER to resume the race to Brazil. The team of boat builders led by Shore Manager Neil Cox have been in Puerto Montt for several days and are ready to start work the moment CAMPER docks. Current expectations are that the job will take between three and four days.

It is now understood that Abu Dhabi will join CAMPER in Puerto Montt but be shipped from there to Itajai, meaning that valuable points remain up for grabs when CAMPER completes Leg Five.

CAMPER skipper Chris Nicholson says that it’s tight timeframe but one he’s confident of achieving.

“The forecast looks good for us to get to shore, and everything is prepped and ready for our arrival. Even though we have been planning for this for some days now, our focus is gravitating back towards when we re-join this leg.

“There’s no two ways about it – what we’re embarking on is challenging with a lot of time at sea and minimal time to recover but we’re determined to do it.

“Due to the war of attrition we should be able to walk out of this leg with a fourth place (15 points) and we’ll then be aiming to pick up more points in the Itajai in-port race.

“We have to look down the track to all the points that are still on offer. This race remains wide open.

“The important thing for us now is that we have to  arrive in Itajai in the best condition physically and mentally as we can, in order to make sure that we are competitive in the second half of the race.”

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The latest video from on board CAMPER is here